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Need to talk?

If you are being bullied or are concerned about someone who is, you can receive help and support from one of our trained Mentors. We currently do not have the ability to provide support face to face or via the telephone and can only provide an e-mentoring service to those affected by bullying.

If you would rather speak to someone over the telephone, you can call Childline on: 0800 1111

For any community-related issues, such as anti-social behaviour, we would suggest contacting your landlord, the local police or your local environmental health department (where applicable), as we are unable to deal with these types of complaints.

Supporting the Workplace

Bullying and Harassment creates an unhappy and unproductive workplace which can result in poor morale and poor performance. A recent survey sponsored by the TUC found that 1 in 3 employees felt they had been bullied at work and 30% have witnessed bullying in the workplace. Bullying currently causes the loss of 18 million working days every year at a cost of £18 billion a year to the UK economy, from sickness related absences, staff turnover and the reduction of productivity.

Of course, there’s much more to bullying than just the financial implications, with operational and human costs also being high.

Understanding Reasons for Workplace Bullying

There are many different reasons that cause a person to bully another and while we might like to think that no identifiable characteristic would bring unwanted attention, anyone can be bullied at work.

But what about workplace hierarchy? In responding to a CIPD study, 43% of those bullied at work reported that harassment stemmed from a line manager, with 38% saying that it came from colleagues. One in five had suffered bullying from a senior manager or chief executive. With more authority, comes great responsibility, but it can also lessen accountability. Those at the top may feel that they’re simply too indispensable to be reprimanded, or their position means that people may not report the abuse.

How can bullying affect the workplace?

Bullying affects the overall “health” of an organisation. It is an issue that not only affects the individual being bullied. It also affects the manager that is dealing with the issue and the entire staff team/work place. An “unhealthy” workplace can have many detrimental effects, including:

In unhealthy work environments that allow bullying to occur, the problem can be inherent in the work culture. If intimidation or harassment becomes part of the culture, it sets a dangerous example. In the workplace so many excuses are made for this unacceptable behaviour ranging from ‘it’s just his robust management style’ to saying ‘it’s just a bit of banter’.

Fostering a culture that is free from bullying is vital and needs to come from the top down. Management commitment is the most important component of preventing bullying in the workplace and is best demonstrated through a robust policy structure which is communicated to all staff.

Bullying and harassment can be verbal, non verbal, written, or physical so your policy should be comprehensive and one that covers a range of incidents, from bullying and harassment to physical violence. Your policy needs to make it clear that this type of behaviour is considered a gross misconduct and those found guilty will be dismissed.

Your policy structure must:

Be developed by management and employee representatives

Apply to management, employees, clients, independent contractors and anyone who has a relationship with your company

Define what you mean by workplace bullying (or harassment or violence) in precise, concrete language

Provide clear examples of unacceptable behaviour and working conditions

State in clear terms your organisation’s view toward workplace bullying and its commitment to the prevention of workplace bullying

Precisely state the consequences of making threats or committing acts of bullying

Outline the process by which preventive measures will be developed

Encourage reporting of all incidents of bullying or other forms of workplace violence

Outline the confidential process through which employees can report incidents and to whom

Assure there will be no repercussions for those reporting employees

Outline the procedures for investigating and resolving complaints

Describe how information about potential risks of bullying/violence will be communicated to employees

Make a commitment to provide support services to those affected by bullying

Offer a confidential Employee Assistance Program (EAP) to allow employees with personal problems to seek help

Make a commitment to fulfil the prevention training needs of different levels of personnel within the organisation

Make a commitment to monitor and regularly review the policy

State applicable regulatory requirements, where possible

DO

Encourage everyone at the workplace to act towards others in a respectful and professional manner

Create a culture of acceptance, tolerance and respect

Have a workplace policy in place that includes a reporting system

Educate everyone that bullying is a serious matter

Try and resolve situations before they get serious or out of control

Ensure everyone is aware of what constitutes bullying and to whom they can go to for help

Treat all complaints seriously and deal with them promptly and confidentially

Train supervisors and managers in how to deal with complaints and potential situations. Encourage them to address situations promptly whether or not a formal complaint has been filed

Train your staff to be aware of and manage their own behaviour towards others

Have an impartial third party help with the resolution, if necessary

DO NOT

IGNORE any potential problems.

DELAY resolution. Act as soon as possible.

Employers are responsible for preventing bullying and harassment – they’re liable for any harassment suffered by their employees.

Visit our training page for information on Creating a Safe and Healthy Workplace

Workplace bullying and harassment

Bullying and harassment is behaviour that makes someone feel intimidated or offended. Harassment is unlawful under the Equality Act 2010. Of course, bullying is a form of harassment. Bullying and harassment means any unwanted behaviour that makes someone feel intimidated, degraded, humiliated or offended. It is not necessarily always obvious or apparent to others and may happen in the workplace without an employer’s awareness.

Bullying or harassment can be between two individuals or it may involve groups of people. It can often be hard to recognise – symptoms may not be obvious to others and may be insidious. It can also occur in written communications, by phone or through email, not just face-to-face.

Under the Equality Act 2010, harassment is unwanted conduct which is related to one of the following: age, disability, gender reassignment, race, religion or belief, sex and sexual orientation and is therefore unlawful.

People do not always feel able or confident enough to complain, particularly if the harasser is a manager or senior member of staff. Sometimes they will simply resign. It is therefore very important for employers to ensure that staff are aware of options available to them to deal with potential bullying or harassment, and that these remain confidential.

Employers’ responsibilities

Employers are responsible for preventing bullying and harassment and they are liable for any harassment suffered by their employees.

Anti-bullying and harassment policies and training can help prevent problems and help create a happy, friendly and respectful working environment. Please click here to view our training.

Get Involved

Support BulliesOut

Need to talk?

If you are being bullied or are concerned about someone who is, you can receive help and support from one of our trained Mentors. We currently do not have the ability to provide support face to face or via the telephone and can only provide an e-mentoring service to those affected by bullying.

If you would rather speak to someone over the telephone, you can call Childline on: 0800 1111

For any community-related issues, such as anti-social behaviour, we would suggest contacting your landlord, the local police or your local environmental health department (where applicable), as we are unable to deal with these types of complaints.